July 14 2011

8:07 PM

PGA TOUR rookie Robert Karlsson of Sweden, in a column he wrote
for USA Today, addressed the notion that the world order in golf
has changed forever, and that all is gloom and doom for American
golfers.

Karlsson

“It is not quite as straightforward as that,” wrote
the 41-year-old Karlsson, who thinks the future of golf in the U.S.
is safe, especially with Bubba Watson, Dustin Johnson, Rickie
Fowler and Hunter Mahan on the rise.

Karlsson, who spent the last 20 years primarily on the European
Tour before joining the PGA TOUR this year, did have a theory why
there are fewer Americans in the top 100 of the Official World Golf
Ranking that at any other time since the rankings began in
1987.

He thinks Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson have been so dominant
that other Americans have been lost in their shadows.

“It must be a little dispiriting for the next
generation,” Karlsson wrote. “They are top, top
players, but are not getting the level of support or attention that
the likes of Tiger and Phil enjoy. In my view, it is holding them
back.”

He added later in his column that “the Bubbas, Hunters and
Dustins of today are not enjoying that level of attention and
adulation despite the excellence of their game. They totally
deserve it. And I think they need it to kick on to the next step of
being established top 10 greats.”